1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to an image data filing system having: an image photographing device to sequentially photograph an image of an object by using, for example, a long microfilm; a microfilm retrieving device to retrieve the image of the microfilm photographed by the photographing device; and a microfilm image scanning device to electrically read the retrieved image of the microfilm and to use it as image data.
2. Related Background Art
Hitherto, such a kind of image data filing system has the following construction.
A rotary camera as an image photographing device is used to microphotograph an image of an object (original) such as a literature, drawing, draft, bill, check, stocks, or the like and to a microfilm or the like. The rotary camera continuously microphotographs an object while exposing through a slit and moving the object and the microfilm together synchronously with a reduction ratio, so that a rapid photographing of a large-number of images and a photographing of a long size can be performed.
That is, the object fed from a sheet feeding port is conveyed at a predetermined speed and passes through an exposing portion. In this instance, an image of the object illuminated by a lamp is formed onto a film surface by a lens via a plurality of mirror systems and a slit.
There is also a rotary camera having a function to simultaneously photograph a retrieval mark to be used for retrieval by a microfilm retrieving device in correspondence to an image to be photographed. A rotary camera constructed such that a retrieval mark is photographed and an image address of the image is automatically transmitted from the rotary camera to a computer has also been devised.
The image stored in the microfilm has an excellent proof ability (admissibility) because it can bear a preservation for a long time, high preservation performance is derived, a density is high, alteration is impossible, and the like. On the contrary, a developing process is necessary after the photographing and its handling is not easy.
A microfilm reader printer has been devised for purposes such that the microfilm image can be printed, a microfilm image scanning device optically reads the image of the microfilm and converts into image data of a digital signal and can electrically store, the reader printer is connected to a telephone line, and the image data can be stored into a storing device in the computer.
The microfilm image scanning device is used to convert the image of the microfilm which was optically projected into image data of an electric signal by using a photoelectric transferring element such as a CCD or the like and to send the signal to the outside after that.
The microfilm retrieving device has film conveying means for forwardly (normally) or reversely conveying an attached roll-shaped microfilm via a projecting position (film illuminating portion) between a take-up portion and a rewinding portion. Address information of a desired image frame portion (image information portion, microimage portion) which was previously inputted to a controlling portion by inputting means and should be retrieved is compared with mark detection information that is inputted to the controlling portion from mark detecting means for detecting a pre-added retrieval mark in correspondence to each image frame portion which has sequentially photographed along a longitudinal direction of the film in a forward or reverse conveying step of the film. On the basis of a comparison result, the film conveying means is automatically driven or stopped so that the desired image frame portion is retrieved and stopped at the projecting position.
Generally, the retrieval mark is photographed in a lower portion of the image photographed on a long microfilm in order to discriminate the position of each image. The microfilm retrieving device is a device such that the retrieval mark associated with the image is detected by mark detecting means and is counted, thereby retrieving a desired image.
The retrieval mark usually has three sizes of large, middle, and small. A file of the middle mark is constructed by a set of a plurality of small marks (page marks). A large mark (batch) is constructed by a set of a plurality of middle marks (file marks).
The microfilm image scanning device ordinarily has a reader screen. The image frame portion retrieved at the projecting position is enlargedly projected as an image onto a reader screen surface by a projection optical system on the device main body side such as a reader or the like, so that projected image can be viewed.
In this state, when a scanning instruction is sent to the microfilm image scanning device, the scanning function operates and the image of the microfilm read out by the photoelectric transferring element such as a CCD or the like is extracted as image data of the digital signal and stored in the storing device.
As mentioned above, the microfilm retrieving device and the microfilm image scanning device with the storing device automatically retrieve the individually photographed images and can sequentially feed them while scanning and storing. Therefore, they are also used as a microfilm image converting device for automatically and continuously converting a plurality of microfilm images into electric signals and storing into the storing device.
In a system comprising the image photographing device, microfilm image retrieving device, and microfilm image scanning device, a system for forming a database by using an image address upon photographing and retrieving and printing a desired image on the basis of the data in the database has been devised.
At this time, if the microfilm image scanning device is used, the image can be displayed on the screen of a computer or can be printed. Further, when image data is read out from the microfilm image scanning device and stored into the computer, if the image data is stored into the storing device of the computer, the stored electronized image can be used in a future retrieval.
However, even if the image data as an electronized image is stored in the computer, since no index is allocated to the image, the index to retrieve the electronized image has to be inputted each time the image data is stored. The operations to scan the microfilm image and store into the computer are very troublesome.
The invention is made to solve the problems of the conventional technique as mentioned above and it is an object of the invention to provide an image data filing system which doesn""t need to input an index each time image data is stored.
To accomplish the above object, the invention comprises: photographing means for photographing an image of an original to a recording medium and allocating a retrieval mark based on index information of the image to the recording medium; retrieving means for retrieving the image by using the recording medium to which the image was photographed by the photographing means; and image data converting means for converting the image retrieved by the retrieving means into image data and storing into a storing medium, wherein when the converted image data is stored into the storing medium, the data converting means stores the image data to the storing medium in association with the index information.
Therefore, the index information which has previously been stored when the original is photographed can be constructed as a database and the image data can be stored and filed in association with the index information of the database. Thus, since an index of the image data filing is allocated by the index information formed upon photographing of the original, there is no need to input an index every image data to be stored.
It is also preferable to use an image address as index information.
Thus, the image data can be stored and filed by using the database of the image addresses.
The photographing means has code reading means for reading a code added to the original and it is also preferable to use code information of the code as index information.
Thus, a database is formed by the code information and the image data can be stored and filed in association with the code information.
It is also preferable to have discriminating means for discriminating whether the image retrieved by the retrieving means is the same as the image data which has already been stored in the storing medium or not on the basis of the index information associated to each image.
Thus, whether the image data is overlapped data or not can be discriminated before it is stored as image data.
It is also desirable that the storing medium stores discrimination information indicative of a result of the discrimination of whether the image is the same as the image data which has already been stored or not as one data item together with the image data.
Thus, by retrieving the image data, the presence or absence of the overlapped image data can be soon known.
When it is determined by the discriminating means that the image is the same as the image data which has already been stored, it is desirable that the image data converting means skips the image without converting into the image data.
Thus, in case of continuously storing the image data, a high storing speed can be realized.